It’s been a summer of change for the New York Rangers under the leadership of general manager Chris Drury, who has made several moves to try and improve the roster on the ice after they missed the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the second consecutive year.
Not only have the Rangers traded away Vincent Trocheck, but they’ve also acquired Pavel Dorofeyev from the Vegas Golden Knights along with goaltender Joonas Korpisalo from the Boston Bruins.
In the meantime, the Rangers have announced a pair of new hires for their American Hockey League affiliate Hartford Wolf Pack.
The New York Rangers Have Announced A Pair Of New Hires
The Rangers have announced that they have hired Bob Woods and John Stevens to serve as assistant coaches on the staff of their American Hockey League affiliate Hartford Wolf Pack to serve under head coach Jay Leach, who was hired earlier in the offseason.
Woods brings 14 seasons of NHL coaching experience, most recently with the Seattle Kraken in 2024-25. He has also held assistant roles with the Minnesota Wild, Buffalo Sabres, Anaheim Ducks and Washington Capitals. His previous head-coaching stops included the AHL’s Hershey Bears, where he won a Calder Cup in 2009, as well as the Saskatoon Blades and Mississippi Sea Wolves.
Before becoming a coach, Woods played more than 700 professional games in the ECHL and AHL. He won the 1997 Calder Cup with Hershey and was inducted into the ECHL Hall of Fame in 2012.
Stevens joins the Wolf Pack after spending last season with Kiekko-Espoo in Finland’s Liiga. He previously spent nine seasons in the AHL with Abbotsford, Utica and Bridgeport, totaling 389 games and 163 points (65 goals, 98 assists).
Last season, the Wolf Pack amassed a record of 26-38-8, finishing eighth overall in the Atlantic Division.
Rangers GM Chris Drury Penned An Honest Letter To Fans Last Season
Amidst what was a difficult season for the Rangers, GM Chris Drury penned a letter to fans announcing they understand they aren’t where they’d like to be and that difficult trades were on the horizon.
“We wanted to take a moment to connect with our loyal and passionate fanbase. We know and feel your disappointment with how the season has gone to this point. We are just as frustrated and want nothing more than to deliver an on-ice product you can be proud of – it’s what drives us every day. No one in the organization is happy with what has transpired – from management, to coaches, to players. Over the last few years, we’ve had some successes and moments to cherish, but ultimately it was not the end goal. We are working relentlessly every day to bring a Stanley Cup back to New York because that is what our fans deserve.”
Not long afterward, the Rangers informed forward Artemi Panarin that he was not going to be re-signed, and soon shipped him to the Los Angeles Kings where he signed a two-year extension.
Trocheck was a move that was expected to happen soon afterward, but he remained with the club through the end of the season before being traded to the Utah Mammoth.
Rangers GM Chris Drury Announces New Executive Hires